Barcode
by Marina Rose
Summary: She felt the heat from the car before she saw it. The warm metal hit her thigh and then she flew, over the top of the car and back onto the hard asphalt. The screech of the car coming to a stop was far away, her ears were full of cotton. As she laid there, her body frozen and the world slowly growing darker, her eyes locked onto the black-clad figure standing in the distance.
1. Chapter 1

Getting off the bus in a dark quiet, sleepy town that house a few hundred families that thrived on fishing and other sea related goods, providing a very taxing but rewarding way of life, the girl let out a happy sigh at finally being home from school. She turned and waved good bye to the bus driver, she hopped down the steps off the street.

As she started on the pathway she stopped suddenly, "Oh, I had better text my mom." she pulled out her phone quickly and typing out a message to her mother saying that she had just got off the bus and would be there in the next couple minutes, also asking if dinner was almost ready. She was starving from a long day at school! She laughed softly to herself, happy to be home and eat dinner with her family.

Her footsteps made muffled sounds as she walked towards her house, stopping to check if her family's car was indeed in the driveway before opening the gate, leaving it open so that she could take out the trash after dinner. She started to hum under her breath as she opened the door.

"Mom! Dad! I'm home!" She called out happily as she set down her school bag. She couldn't wait to get out of her school uniform...

Her thoughts were cut off as she looked up, into her living room and was paralyzed in fear. Her parents were lying motionless on the floor, she couldn't tell from where she was standing if they were even breathing. Her attention was solely focused on the man dressed in black lurking above her parents bodies. Her hands started to tremble as he stepped closer, taking large, slow deliberate steps to her.

She could feel her heart start to pound, the shivering racking her whole body. The man stopped in front of her, the brim of his dark hat covering his face in shadows. He lifted his hand and touch her cheek. She flinched at his touch, letting out a frightened gasp as his fingers trailed down her cheek.

She took another deep breath and mustered up all the strength she could, she shoved the man away, twisting away as he reached out again to grab her. Her hands ripped open the door, hitting her pursuer in the face. Her breath rushed out of her lungs as she ran through the gate she had thankfully left open, she raced up the path from her house, tears streaming down her face.

"Help me!" she screamed out. "Someone save me!" her cries echoed through the empty streets. Her chest was tight with fear, "Help!" she bolted with a little bit more energy launching herself into the main road, into the light, without looking.

She felt the heat from the car before she saw it. The warm metal hit her thigh and then she flew, over the top of the car and back onto the hard asphalt. The screech of the car coming to a stop was far away, her ears were full of cotton. As she laid there, her body frozen and the world slowly growing darker, her eyes locked onto the black-clad figure standing away from the commotion. Then she knew nothing more.

...

A man with rosy pink hair stepped out the glass shop, sweat beading on his forehead, he dabbed at the moisture with the towel around his neck as his phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID and swiftly answered it.

"Wendy? What's going on?" He asked, he knew that the girl was on a school trip.

There was a huff on the other end of the line, "Natsu! You're overreacting!" she sighed, "The bus got into a small accident." She quickly hurried on as soon as she heard his intake of breath, "I'm fine! It's just a small gash on my forehead." Wendy frowned slightly as the sounds of the ambulance grew closer. "The ambulance is here Natsu."

Natsu grumbled under his breath, "Alright, alright, just tell me what hospital you're going to." He quickly jotted down the name on a scrap piece of paper, "Okay, I'll go pick up a snack for us and then I'll be right there. See you soon!"

Wendy laughed, "I'll be waiting. See you soon!" she hung up the phone.

Natsu sighed and jammed his phone in his pocket and headed to his locker to grab his stuff. He explained where he was going to a fellow co-worker and dashed out the door. He hopped onto the flame red bike that sat in front of the glass making shop. He strapped on the helmet and started the bike, taking off just mere moments later. He revved the engine as he weaved through the late night traffic.

Natsu pulled off to the side, only to pick up some street food that he knew Wendy loved. Soon her was back on the road and zooming into the hospital parking lot. He quickly got off the bike, stowing the helmet under the seat. As he walked towards the hospital, his phone went off, the jingle signifying that the call was from his boss.

"Yo boss!" He greeted cheerfully. "I had to leave early today, Wendy got into an accident." He greeted the passing by emergency personnel. "No, no, no. She's fine, she said it's just a scratch." Natsu grinned as he entered the hospital, "I'll warn you I won't come into work tomorrow." He chuckled as he signed the visitors logs. "I might faint if I even see a mark on her face." he laughed again, "I'm just giving you a heads up. I'll talk to you tomorrow."

He entered the hospital, heading straight to the front desk. He waited until she finished her phone call before getting her attention.

"How can I help you sir?" The nurse at the desk asked, glancing up from her computer.

"I'm looking for my sister, Wendy Marvell. She was in a car accident." Natsu explained, shifting from side to side. Hospitals made him uncomfortable.

The nurse looked back to her computer and tapped away at the keys. After a moment she spoke, "She is down the hall in the emergency room." She looked back to Natsu, "Look for her name on the foot of the bed."

Natsu nodded, "Thank you!" Following the nurse's instructions, he walked down the hall and into the middle of the ER. He winced at the loud beeps and cries from the parents of unfortunate children. He tried not to look at the people lying in the beds, he only scanned the names on the end of the bed. As he passed by a row of beds, he bumped into a doctor, a man with ginger hair and glasses, the man said nothing, sparing Natsu only a glare before leaving. Natsu brushed it off and continued looking for his sister's name. He reached the corner of the room and smiled when he read Wendy's name. He grinned and pulled back the curtain. "Wendy!" he said happily. He stepped up next to the bed, "I brought you a snack!"

Wendy laid there on her side, still and quiet. Her dark hair splayed across the pillow, her eyes closed. Natsu frowned, "Oi, Wendy, I came to see you, and I even brought you food!" He placed the bag on the bedside table, "You can sleep when you're done eating." When she didn't move, his frown deepened, "Wendy, wake up already..."

He reached out and turned her over, "Wendy..." He gasped as he saw the bright red across the pillow. There was a large gash across her throat, ugly against her fair skin. "Wendy?" Natsu dropped to his knees.

"Doctor! Nurse!" His eyes filled with tears, "Anyone! Help my sister!" he yelled. "Wendy, don't do this to me..." Hr cradled her head in his arms, "Wake up, please..."

...

 **A/N: hello, this story is written more for myself, but if you like it then that's great! haha, thanks for stopping by!**

 **disclaimer: based of the korean-drama, Girl Who Can See Smells. I wont be following it exactly, but it will follow it for the most part.**

 **Xoxo**

 **Marina Rose**


	2. Chapter 2

_Seven Days After The Accident_

The isolated stretch of beach was swarming with police cars and vans, paramedic personnel combed the sand, the yellow police tape fluttered with the sea breeze. A small police car pulled up and a small man stepped out of the car. He squinted against the bright sun, scanning the shore for a moment before heading out to the epicenter of it all.

There against the black rocks of the beach, a couple were posed sitting with their backs against the rock. They seemed relatively untouched, almost serene. It sent chills down the man's spine.

"Detective Makarov!" One of the officers called out as they noticed his arrival.

Makarov walked over to the bodies, "What do we have here?" His face was grim and set with a frown.

"This is the couple that went missing from the village by the sea." One of the men opened up a notebook and began reading off, "Jude, age forty-five. Layla, age forty-three. They went missing seven days ago. Their daughter was in a car accident and the local police tried to contact them. After a day they reported the family missing." The man closed the notebook. "The girl is still in a coma."

Makarov sighed, "Poor girl. Still in a coma and doesn't even know that her parents are dead." He shook his head and crouched low, he looked at the couple, the feeling of pity fulling his chest. This poor family... He stopped and grabbed a pair of gloves out of his pocket as he noticed something on the man's arm. "What is this?"

He pulled the sleeve of the man's shirt up and revealed the marks on the dead man's forearm. They were small and evenly made. The cuts were deep, but were obviously made after they had been killed.

The sight of those marks made him freeze, "The daughter is the witness." He shot to his feet. "What hospital is she in?" He waited for the man to finish sputtering out the name. "What is her name?"

"Wendy."

...

 _Several Months Later_

The girl laid on the hospital bed, the monitors all around her making soft beeping sounds. She had been in a coma for one hundred and ninety three days. It would be against all odds if she ever woke up. Which of course she did.

She slowly moved her hand, the motion gained the nurse's attention, soon her eyes flickered open. She didn't stay awake long, maybe a minute, a few seconds? Time seemed to hold no value at the moment.

The next time she woke up, she stayed awake, sitting up in her bed. Nurses and doctors surrounded her, they all wore various expressions of worry. She couldn't move her lips quite yet, trying to form words seemed impossible. One of the nurses gave her a look of pity as the rest of the doctors filed out. What really frighten the girl was all the particles that were floating around the room. They seemed to emanate from everything, anything that had a smell or scent. She could feel her heart rate pick as well as hear it from the monitor that was next to her bed. The nurse placed her hand on the girl's shoulder, drawing her attention to the woman.

"I think you should see this first..." The nurse grabbed a mirror from the side bed table.

The girl took the mirror with uncertain hands, she looked at the nurse before lifting the glass. She saw a small face, with delicate features, blonde hair framed her face. The girl that stared back at her had a lost look in her eyes. And then she gasped, her right eye was chocolate brown but her left... Instead of the warm brown, it was an icy blue. She reached up, her fingers trailing under her eye.

What had happened to her?

...

The girl spent the first few days thinking to herself. There were three things that happened to her since she woke up.

The first thing was that fact she woke up against all the odds. The doctors told her many times the no one had expected her to ever wake up from the coma, but by some miracle she woke up after one hundred and ninety -three days.

The doctors had also told her that there was no scientific explanation as to why her left eye turned blue. People around the hospital were unsettled and scared by it, causing the girl to cover it up most of the time.

The second weird thing is that she couldn't remember anything. The reason she was in a hospital bed for so long...she tried hard for many days to see if the memories would return, but in the end she couldn't remember anything. She couldn't even recognize her dad after she woke up. It was like she had never met the man before in her life.

The third weird thing was that she could now see smells. As if her life wasn't weird enough.

She spent the next few weeks she worked on regaining the muscle mass back into her legs and arms that were weak from the months of laying in a bed. She made a consciousness effort to keep her eye patch on as the sight of her left eye tended to freak people out.

After the doctors deemed her well enough to go home, her father brought her some new clothes. Makarov was a good father, even if she couldn't remember much. He had stopped by the hospital almost everyday since she had woken up. He was always trying to help her remember something about the accident, and he never pushed her. He was always caring for her.

He waited for her to open the door, he smiled and gave her a big hug. "Ready to go home, Lucy?"

Lucy smiled, "Of course!"

...

Marakov waited for Lucy out in the car, today was the day he would take her home, start her new life. His phone rang, answering it after checking the caller ID. "Chief, what can I do for you?"

"How is the girl?" His former boss asked, "Are you sure that you want to quit and enter the witness protection program with her?"

Makarov coughed, "This is my choice. I'll keep her safe." He saw Lucy exit the hospital doors, "I have to go." Makarov waved to Lucy as she looked around for him, "Wendy is dead, but Lucy is still alive." With that he hung up the phone.

...

 **A/N: Thanks for reading, if there are any questions I'll be more than happy to answer them!**

 **xoxo**

 **Marina Rose**


	3. Chapter 3

The girl spent the first few days thinking to herself. There were three things that had happened to her since she woke up.

The first thing was that fact she woke up against all the odds. The doctors told her many times the no one had expected her to ever wake up from the coma, but by some miracle she woke up after one hundred and ninety-three days.

The doctors had also told her that there was no scientific explanation as to why her left eye turned blue. People around the hospital were unsettled and scared by it, so she just covered it up most of the time.

The second weird thing was that she couldn't remember anything. The reason she was in a hospital bed for so long...she tried hard for many days to see if the memories would return, but in the end she couldn't remember anything. Everything about her life, about who she was, her friends, her family, all like it never happened.

Slowly she started to rebuild all her atrophied muscles with rigorous physical therapy, and soon was recovered enough that she could leave the hospital, which brought her to the third weird thing that had happened to her. A man claiming to be her father had shown up a week after she had awoken from her coma, and had been there almost everyday since. She felt like she had never seen this man before, but since her memory was non-existent this man was all she had to go on.

Before she realized it, a month had went by and she had been living with her father for several weeks, and today was the day that she was starting her final year of school. Her morning had followed the normal routine, wake up, brush her teeth, take a shower, and get dressed. Only this time she was wearing her new school uniform. As she stared at herself in the mirror, at her two unusual different colored eyes, trying to settle the unwanted butterflies that ruled her stomach until there was knock at her bedroom door.

Makarov walked down the hall and stopped before his daughter's bedroom door. He looked at the box that was in his hands, he had called an old friend for a favor and she had come through for him. He hoped that it would help his daughter, help her feel normal.

"Can I come in?" Her father asked, opening the door slightly.

She sighed,"Sure come on in." She sat down on the edge of her bed. Her mood was evident that she truly didn't want to talk with him. "What's up?" She didn't raise her eyes to look at him as he entered the room.

Makarov opened the door completely and walked inside, his hands behind his back, he knew that she was nervous about starting a new school with her eyes being the way they were, "Are you almost ready for school? I made you breakfast..." he said, he looked at his daughter and frowned as he notice her expression, "What's wrong dear?" he asked as he sat down next to her.

She sighed and got up from the bed, walking across the room and she caught her reflection out of the corner of her eye and looked in the mirror, at her different colored eyes, "I just wish that I could have a normal school year. Where people didn't freak out about the color of my eyes." She frowned at herself in the mirror, her feelings of doubt and nervousness clear on her face.

Makarov said nothing as he watched her stop at the mirror, and then stood up, "Well it seems like a perfect time to give you your present." The small smile that formed was hidden under his mustache.

She turned around and gave him a questioning stare, "A present? What for?"

Makarov walked forward and took one of her hands, "Just because you're here, awake and ready to finish your last year of school and because you're my daughter." He gave her a smile and placed a small box into her hands. "Here."

She looked at him with another questioning glance before turning her attention to the box in her hands. She carefully opened the box and took out a small round case, "What is it?" she asked, turning the case over in her hands, trying to guess what it could be.

Makarov smiled, this time it wasn't hidden, "It's a contact lens that will make both your eyes brown." He shrugged, not wanting to seem too excited at the mounting happiness that was apparent on her face, "Maybe you'll have a normal school year after all."

She felt her mouth pull up in a grin and she grabbed her father into a hug, "Oh, thank you so much! This is a great present! I'm going to put it in right now!" she rushed out of the room and into the bathroom.

Makarov laughed and shook his head, "I'll be downstairs, come down when you're ready." Within the last couple months that he had the girl live in his home she had truly become his daughter. He would keep her safe, for as long as she needs it. His thoughts were interrupted as she ran down the steps, "Be careful! You're going to hurt yourself!" he laughed as he sat down at the table.

She grinned and blinked her eyes happily, "I have two normal colored eyes thanks to you. Thanks dad!" she said with sincerity.

As she sat down and began eating, the feeling of paternal love welled up inside of him. He chuckled as she shoveled food into her mouth, causing her to glare at him and quickly swallow her food. Once she finished, she grabbed her bag and ran out the door, only after tripping a few times causing her father to remind her to watch where she was going.

Makarov watched as she turned the corner and out of sight, "Have a good day...Lucy."

...

 **A/N: A quick update, thanks for reading!**

 **xoxo**

 **Marina Rose**


	4. Chapter 4

_**Three Years Later**_

A pink haired man stood at the counter in front of the large window of the convenience store, slurping up the noodles from the steaming hot cup of ramen noodles he held in his hands. He brought the cup to his lips and drank what was left of the hot broth, placing the empty cup next to the two others already on the counter. The man let out a heavy sigh, scanning the sidewalk in front of the store, his eyes searching, for someone.

A girl, no more than the age of sixteen, who wore the uniform of the store walked up to him, and thrusting her arm out and handing him a large coffee cup. "Here Mister." she said grumpily. Once he had taken the cup. she folded her arms, "Hey, you've been here for three nights in a row, how long do you have to stake out the place for?"

Natsu blinked at the girl's rudeness and ignored her question, "Thanks, for the coffee." He turned back to the window and gave a casual wave to the car across the street where his colleagues sat.

In the car sat two detectives, both with dark hair and bored expressions. Gray Fullbuster had been a detective for two years with the homicide department. With his cool attitude and level headed smarts, he was one of the best on the force. His current partner, Gajeel Redfox was a man a few words. Tall and brooding, his pierced face helped him blend in with the slums and gain valuable leads and his cunning allowing him to go undercover with ease.

They had been on the trail of a robbery gone wrong suspect, he had been spotted in the area, thus leading to the week long stakeout they have been on.

Gray sighed, and stretched his arms above his head, glancing over at the store window. He put his arms back down turning to Gajeel, "How many nights has this guy been volunteering for undercover work?"

Gajeel didn't even look from his newspaper, "Three weeks, every night."

Gray let out a low whistle, "That's some dedication." More than he had, that was for sure.

Gajeel flipped his page, "Word is that he wants to get moved up to our division. He's trying to impress the Chief." He looked over at Gray, "But the Chief won't hear him out."

"With all this effort the Chief should at least hear him out." Gray said, "I kinda feel bad for him." He looked over at the store one last time before his phone rang. Gray knew who it was before even looking at it, and Gajeel did too.

The taller man sighed in frustration, "I wouldn't have let you date my best friend if i knew this was going to happen every time we have to stay out overnight."

Gray just grinned and quickly swiped to answer the phone,"Juvia, you know I'm working..."

Meanwhile in the store Natsu was beginning to grow bored, he had been here all week and the perp still hadn't shown up. He sighed and started eating his fourth cup of ramen when the bell above the door rang.

"Welcome!" The girl said behind the register.

Natsu looked up, checking the reflection in the glass before pulling out a piece of paper from his looked back up to the glass once again and felt a smirk form on his face.

"Show time." he said under his breath.

The man wore a cap and sunglasses and was currently shoving a sack at the poor girl, demanding that she give him the money in hushed tones. Natsu waited until the man's attention was solely on the money and crept up behind him.

"Freeze!" Natsu shouted once he was completely blocking the exit.

The man whirled around, and immediately lunged at the pink haired man, waving a knife pulled from his pocket. Natsu leaned out of the way and reached out to disarm the man, but the man reached out and pulled down a nearby display down and onto Natsu.

Natsu brushed it off, unfazed by the action and lunged to grab the man, but suddenly his body felt heavy, and the man grabbed him, pushing him back and through the glass door, shattering it into little pieces. The man barreled right past Natsu and off into the night.

The girl ran out to the passed out pink haired man, "Are you okay Mister?!"

Gray and Gajeel raced out of the car and to the man's side. Gray quickly turned Natsu over and checked his pulse, and let out a sigh, "He's fine. Just sleeping."

Gajeel frowned, "He's...sleeping?" he kneeled down to the ground, "This jackass, is sleeping?" He peered at Natsu's face, "Wait until the chief hears this..."

 **...**

 **A/N:**

 **Just a quick Update for those who are following this story, another chapter will be up within the week!**

 **Happy New Year guys~!**

 **Xoxo**

 **Marina Rose**


	5. Chapter 5

Lucy blinked under the glare of the stage lights, her mic was beginning to itch in her ear after the long hours of rehearsal. She stood center stage and looked down at the clipboard in her hands, there were only a few more items to go through before they could start the dry rehearsal for tonight's show.

"Dim the lights some!" Lucy spoke into the headset, smiling when the lights dimmed a bit. She gave a thumbs up to the box and moved to check the timing of the sound tracks. Her work as a production assistant has been like a dream, finding a theater company right after school without any experience. Lucy stopped for a second and looked around at all the techs, actors, and producers. They had become like her family in the year that she had been with the company.

"Lucy~!" A dark-haired woman walked towards her, and bottle of water in her hand. She was already in costume, a blue bikini top and tan capris with a pair of heels was quite the statement. Cana Alberona was all about statements, it's what made her the best. "When did you get here this morning?"

Lucy went to her and gave her a hug, "Since about four? I remember it was dark." Lucy laughed, crossing her arms. "We're almost done with the preliminary checks, and then you can start your dress rehearsal."

Cana waved her off, "Since when have I needed a dress rehearsal?" She lifted her water bottle to her lips and took a long drink.

Lucy raised her eyebrow, "Cana, is that really water?" She knew her friend well, and almost every time they saw each other, Cana had some sort of alcohol with her. Cana grinned at her, causing Lucy to sigh and smile, "Don't let your dad catch you." she warned.

"Has he ever?" She gave her a sly wink. Cana slung her arm over Lucy's shoulder, "Come find me when you finish up here, and we'll go get some lunch before the final prep for tonight."

"You got it, I haven't eaten yet. Mexican?" Lucy asked.

"Tequila sounds great!" Cana agreed as she walked away.

Lucy laughed before quickly going back to work with a renewed vigor, lunch was coming and she couldn't wait.

Right before Lucy could call it quits and find Cana, she heard her name called. She turned to find her boss and Cana's father, Gildarts Clive walking up to her with a dark scowl on his face. Lucy felt herself start to worry, had she did something wrong? As a thousand thoughts flew through her head Gildarts now stood in front of her.

"Good work with the set this morning," Gildarts clapped her on the back, making her stumble a bit, "Have you seen Cana yet? She needs to run through her lines a few times no matter what she says." Gildarts was thankfully looking somewhere else and didn't see Lucy's relieved sigh.

"I haven't seen her yet," She fibbed, she knew the relationship between the two was a bit strained, Cana couldn't take the constant attention. "I'll let her know when I see her that you're looking for her." Lucy gave him a bright smile to hide her lie.

Gildarts nodded and let out a boisterous laugh, "Thanks Lucy." He patted her on the back once more sending her forward and walked away.

Lucy shook her head, that whole family was something, that's for sure. She got back to work and when the other production assistants kicked her out to go eat she finally took a break. Lucy grabbed Cana from her hiding place and headed out to lunch.

"Man~" Cana complained, "It's so nice to have someone else drive!" She laid her seat back and took another drink from her handy water bottle.

"That's because you're too drunk to drive." Lucy retorted.

Cana waved her hand flippantly, "Details, details my dear."

Lucy chuckled at this, "SInce i drove, does that mean you're buying lunch?" She asked with a glimmer of hope, rent was coming up and she was getting short on funds.

"Sure!" She slurred, and fumbled to grab something out of her pocket. "Cause I got my dad's credit card!" She held the object up high and snickered to herself.

"When did you swipe it this time?" Lucy asked in an amused tone.

"Last night, after he came home from the bar." Cana stuck the piece of plastic back into her pocket, "He won't even notice, he never does."

Lucy snorted, "That's because he's just about a big a drunk as you are."

"Where do you think i got it from?" Cana rolled her eyes and sat up, "Oh we're here."

Lucy pulled into a parking spot and unbuckled her seatbelt, "Yes we are, time to eat!" Lucy could already feel her mouth water at the smells coming out of the restaurant. "I'm going to get some tacos, and maybe..." She went through most of the menu before they sat down at a table.

Once they had placed their order and Cana had gotten her Tequila, they settled into comfortable conversation.

"Say Lucy..." Cana started off, taking a sip of her drink, her face in deep thought.

"What's up?" Lucy asked, Cana wasn't one to think too deeply about any one thing.

"Do you think you want to move up to Producer?" Cana asked, looking her friend dead in the eye, "Would you want to if you got the chance?"

Lucy blinked at the sudden question, "I suppose I might. Where did this come from, Cana?"

Cana leaned forward, "I heard my Dad talking with Producers Macao and Wakaba about having a contest within the production assistants to come up with an original show and whoever has the best will get moved up to producer." Cana leaned back, "I know your dream is to become a great producer, and this might your shot."

Lucy sat for a second digesting this new information, "Producer?"

"Yup." Cana took another drink.

Lucy looked at her friend with a spark in her eye, "Where should I start?"

Cana laughed at her friend, "Why from the beginning of course!"

...

 **A/N:**

 **Another quick update, but a bit longer.**

 **Thank you for your reviews and with time your questions shall be answered~**

 **TTFN~ Ta ta for now~**

 **Xoxo**

 **Marina Rose**


	6. Chapter 6

Gray played with his phone at his desk, his feet resting atop the paperwork he should be doing instead of trying to listen in on the Chief's meeting. He was steadily leaning farther and farther towards the door, the chair creaking dangerously and its wheels beginning to leave the ground. He had pulled the traffic cop that been assisting them undercover for the past week into his office ten minutes ago. Gray could almost hear what they were saying...

When Gajeel entered the station, he wasn't in the best moods. He ran his hand through his hair as he walked into their department. Gajeel stopped at the entrance, noticing Gray's odd position and grinned as an idea came to his mind. He walked quietly to the front of his partner's desk. He swiftly reached out and lifted Gray's leg up, overbalancing the detective sending papers as well as the person to the floor.

Gajeel considered his mood in a much better state.

"What the hell man?!" Gray grumbled as he sat up, inspecting to see if he had broken the chair with his fall.

"What do you think you're doing trying to eavesdrop like that?" Gajeel quipped, sitting down at his desk. He opened the top drawer and pulled out a lollipop, quickly unwrapping it and sticking it in his mouth. "You were going to end up on the floor anyway like that."

"And you're going to lose teeth eating candy like that all the time." Gray shot back. He got back up to his feet, sitting the chair upright. He sat down in the chair, fixed his jacket and sent a glare in Gajeel's direction.

Looking over, Gajeel bared his teeth, the stick of the lollipop jutting out in the middle and growled out in between his teeth, "Bite me." He turned his attention back to the computer screen and his work. From the corner of his eye he could see that Gray was picking the papers up off the floor in a huff, meanwhile inching closer to the closed door. Gajeel sighed, this guy would never learn.

...

Natsu stood ramrod straight in the middle of the Homicide and Robbery Chief Detective's office and it was not for the reason he wanted to be in this office. He was pulled right out of an intersection and forced to come to the station. He felt awkward in his bright fluorescent vest, it stood out in stark contrast with the dark office furniture and slate colored walls.

Laxus Dreyer was a patient man, or at least he considered himself to be. What he didn't have patience for was people who didn't take their job seriously. Like falling asleep in the middle of a stakeout and losing the god damn suspect! He sat behind his desk, his hands folded on top of the ornate wood, piercing the incompetent fool before him with his gaze. "Do you know why I called you in here today, Mr. Dragneel?" He asked in a calm tone.

Natsu grit his teeth before moving into a salute, "Yes, sir!"

"And what reason is that, Mr. Dragneel?" Laxus asked, moving his hands down to his lap.

"Failing to apprehend the suspect, sir!" Natsu replied, his arm still in the salute and his back stick straight.

"And why did you fail to apprehend the suspect?" Laxus closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"I...I..." Natsu couldn't bring himself to say it.

"You, you, what Dragneel?" Laxus stood up from his desk, "You fell asleep in the middle of chasing the suspect? You put the workers of the store in danger with your nepotism? You let that dangerous man get away to commit your crimes?" The large man went to stand in front of the traffic cop.

Natsu took a moment to swallow his pride, "Yes, sir!"

"I know you want to come into my department." Laxus said impassively, "But I'm going to let you know right now. I do not let incompetent fools into my department! Now, get out of my sight!" Laxus turned and went back to his desk, completely ignoring the man in his office.

With bile rising in his throat Natsu bowed to the Chief and exited the office. The door swung open and into Gray's face, but Natsu didn't stop and continued on his way out of the department.

Gajeel watched the man leave, sighing at Gray's curses and groans of pain, before turning to make contact with the Chief. "Don't you think you were a little harsh?"

Laxus sneered and got up, going to the door, "Mind your own damn business!" He slammed the door shut.

Gajeel shook his head and turned his attention to the man holding his nose, "I told you, you idiot." He rolled his eyes and crunched his candy, "But you never listen to me, now do you."

Gray reached for the tissues at his desk, "Fuck off."

...

Natsu remained calm all through out the drive back to his posted traffic duty. He made it through the shift, it would be completely unfair to take out his anger on people who didn't do anything. He stayed calm until he was in his house, staring at the picture on his bedside table.

A young girl and an older boy with large smiles stared at the camera, both with happy expressions. Natsu stared at the young girl, "Wendy, I'll get our revenge..." He sighed and put the picture back onto his night stand. He placed his head in his hands.

His life's goal, join the homicide department, seemed so far away...

He groaned, standing up and heading to the kitchen; heating up some water for ramen. He crossed his arms as he waited, the sounds of rushing traffic and the microwave filling the silence of the house.

As the microwave beeped, the sound echoing, Natsu felt his resolve harden, he would join the Homicide department and become a detective to investigate his sister's murder. Then he could have peace, they both could have peace.

…

 **A/N:**

 **Thank you for reading and would you guys like to have longer chapters?**

 **Also if you have questions feel free to pm me anytime!**

 **TTFN~ Ta ta for now~**

 **Xoxo**

 **Marina Rose**


	7. Chapter 7

Lucy rushed through the door, a piece of toast clamped between her teeth, her purse hanging off her right arm while she tried to stuff her left into her jacket sleeve and her boots unzipped. After a few moments of struggling she finally managed to put her arm through the hole and quickly bent down to zip her boots. She straightened up and took a bite out of the toast, swallowing before hastily taking another bite.

Oh she was late, oh so very late. Maybe if she hurried she could make it before lunch. She ran down the street, heading straight to the bus station and as she turned the corner, she saw the bus pull off. "You have got to be kidding me!" Lucy groaned, it just wasn't her morning. She threw the rest of the toast into the closest bin and ran for all she was worth.

"Wait!" She called out, she managed to get to the bus, smacking the side twice before it stopped. "Thank you." she said in passing to the bus driver as she climbed aboard, swiping the bus pass quickly before finding a seat. The moment she sat down she let all her limbs flop, panting heavily as she tried to catch her breath. She pulled her bag up from where it fell on the floor, "I need to work out more." she groaned to herself.

She had been on the bus for several minutes when her phone rang, Lucy groaned knowing that it was someone from work. She took out the phone without looking at the screen. "I know, i know, I'm late. I'm on my way-"

"Lucy calm down." Cana cut in, her tone was clearly amused. "You're not scheduled until this afternoon."

"What?!" Lucy sat up straight, and quickly apologizing after realizing she had basically yelled, "You have got to be kidding me..." Lucy sighed and sunk back down back into the bus seat.

"Serious as a heart attack, dear." Cana snickered. "Anyway, when you get here I need you to take my car and go get the crew lunch, as per Gildarts' order." Cana explained and continued without giving Lucy a chance to answer, "I'll be waiting in the front dressing room. See you soon!"

Lucy stared at her phone as the dial tone rung loudly, signaling that Cana had indeed hung up on her. "Go get the crew lunch. Perfect." Lucy felt her lips thin into a line, this day was off to such a great start. She had to refrain from the urge to bang her head against the rattling bus window. Before she realized it her stop had come, causing her to scramble to gather her things and get off. She picked up her pace as she got closer to the theater.

True to her word, Cana was indeed in the front dressing room, waiting for the blonde to show up. Also, just as Lucy had expected she was drunk. However this wasn't an unusual thing for the two. Gildarts would ask Cana to go get the crew some food and of course Cana wouldn't be in any condition to drive, therefore it was up to Lucy. The blonde didn't even bother asking any questions and just took the keys. She would go to the corner pub that everyone liked, easy and she should be back in like twenty minutes. Everything had gone according to plan, the old man that ran the shop not surprised with her order and had even finished it quicker than Lucy had estimated.

She was about halfway to the theater and was in the middle of making a turn when two motorbikes cut her off, she barely dodged the first one, but she couldn't avoid the second one entirely. She clipped the bike as she stomped on the brakes and sent it skidding over onto the sidewalk, the rider rolling away.

Lucy was frozen in shock for a moment before throwing the car in park and ripping off her seatbelt. She jumped out of the car and ran to the man that was on the ground. Before she reached him, the man had already stood up and had taken off the helmet, revealing his pink hair.

"Are you okay?!" Lucy asked, holding onto the man's arm in case he fell.

The man stared down the street, keeping his eyes on the other motorbike, "I am going to needing your car ma'am for police business." He ran to the open driver's side door and hopped in.

Lucy felt her jaw drop in surprise but flew to the passenger side and got in before the pink haired man could take off without her. He was already driving after the other motorbike before she could even get her seatbelt buckled. She stared at the man, and quickly asked, "Why are you chasing that guy?"

The man's expression didn't change, still solem. "This man is wanted for robbery and murder."

"Oh." Lucy turned back towards the road. She bit her lip and clenched onto the car door handle as the man made a very hard right before slamming on the brakes and jumping out of the car, running into the building; leaving a bewildered Lucy in the car.

...

"Where did he go?" Natsu grumbled to himself. He searched the lobby, gritting his teeth when he couldn't pick the man out of the crowd. The sound of the elevator drew his attention for a moment and Natsu's eyes met the man's before the doors closed completely. Natsu sprinted to the metal doors, but ended up just slapping the cold stainless steel as the elevator departed. He watched the numbers above the doors, noting all the stops. As he entered the next available elevator, he cursed under his breath, it would take him forever to figure out what floor the man got off on and then to catch him...

Just then a slender hand beat his hand to the fourth floor button, completely surprising him. His gaze turned to the other occupant in the elevator, frowning as he met the eyes of the blonde he had borrowed the car from. "Miss-"

"The guy you're looking for is on this floor." She cut him off, turning to face the doors and away from him. "He owes me money for the damages done to my vehicle."

Natsu was going to say something when the doors opened and the blonde pulled him by his arm. He stared incredulously at the back of her head, just what was she doing he wondered. "Miss, this isn't the time for games! I really must find-"

"That guy over there?" She interrupted once again, pointing at the man he was in fact looking for. She released her grip, folding her arms across her chest. "I'll stand by the elevators incase he tries to leave that way, go catch your guy." And she walked away before he could open his mouth again.

Natsu was confused but there was time for questions later, he had a perp to catch.

As soon as the man caught sight of Natsu, he bolted. Natsu gave chase, hopping over the towels and trash cans thrown at him. The people screamed as they raced past them. The man shoved a girl towards Natsu, throwing him onto the floor, and Natsu lost sight of him. He carefully detangled from the girl and hurried to chase him, feeling his heart sink as the man neared the elevator. The grin the man sent him made his inside boil.

But then the blonde from earlier appeared out of nowhere, gripping the man's arm, slipping her leg behind the man's leg and slammed him to the floor. She twisted his arm back, flipping him onto his stomach, she had gotten his other arm as well, pinning them to his back with her knee. She looked up and met Natsu's astonished look, waving her hand at him, "Hurry up!"

Natsu wasted no time and took out his handcuffs and hurriedly cuffed the guy. He looked over at the blonde. "How did you-"

She interrupted him once more, handing him a small business card, "I have to go, but please contact me once he's booked so we can move forward with the charges." She brushed off her clothes and entered the elevator, leaving Natsu with the man and many thoughts.

"Time for you to face the Captain." Natsu said, pulling the man to his feet and his phone out of his pocket. He had some calls to make, he thought with a grin, glancing at the business card in his hand, plenty of calls to make...

...

 **A/N: Here's your update lovely reviewer!**

 **TTFN~ Ta ta for now~**

 **xoxo**

 **Marina Rose**


	8. Chapter 8

Natsu barely supressed his grin as he placed a picture of his sister and himself onto his new desk in the homicide department. After catching the criminal he had failed to do so before had finally gotten him into the department, the Captain of the station had been thrilled with his work in capturing the guy, thrilled enough to go over the Chief's head and place him into the department. The Chief however...was not so thrilled. Natsu glanced over to the door, it had remained shut since he had come in the morning, but the cold shoulder didn't faze him, he was one step closer to his goal.

Just then the door to the department opened up, and two men shuffled in. Natsu had recognized the two from all his undercover work from the past few shorter of the two look haggard while the other taller man seemed to be disgruntled. The two didn't spare a glance in his direction as they took their own seats at their desks.

The shorter one laid his head on his desk, groaning loudly, "Why does she blow everything out of proportion?"

The longer haired man snorted, giving the other man a look of pity, "You knew what you were getting into when you started dating her." He turned his head away to look at something on his computer, "She is a jealous one."

A soft ringtone went off and pulled a sigh from Gray, sitting up and looking at the phone. The display showed a picture of a very pretty woman with long blue hair and large blue eyes with the name Juvia over layed on the bottom part of the screen. Gray frowned and pressed the power button turning the screen dark.

"You can't ignore her forever." Gajeel said, not even looking over at his moping companion, "She will just keep calling." He laughed as the phone rang again when he noticed the bright pink hair across the desks.

Natsu blinked as the long haired man finally noticed him. He gave a small nod of his head and a quiet good morning and started to unpack the rest of his things onto his desk.

"Dragneel?" Gajeel was confused, what the hell was this traffic cop doing here? "The hell are you doing in our department?"

"I work here now." Natsu stood up and bowed to the senior detectives, "Please take care of me."

Gray finally pulled his face away from the cool surface of his desk to look at his new coworker. "how the hell did you get into this department?"

Natsu straightened up, unfazed by the rudeness, "The Captain of the station moved me to the department this morning."

Gray and Gajeel both looked over at the Chief's door, and then looked back at the new addition to their team. Gray leaned forward and motioned for Natsu to do the same. "What did the Chief say?" he was careful not to raise his voice, so that he couldn't be overheard.

However, before Natsu could answer Gray's question, the Chief's door swung open, startling Gray right out of his seat. Laxus gave Gray a withering stare as he fixed his jacket and left the office.

Gajeel waited a moment before bursting out in laughter, Gray sent a dirty look in his direction, slugging him in the shoulder as he settled back into his chair. Gajeel was still laughing, he feinted wiping a tear away. "You idiot!" he wheezed out between chuckles.

"Shut up!" Gray frowned, and choosing to ignore Gajeel, turned back to Natsu, "So what exactly landed you in this shit department?"

But before Natsu could formulate an answer, it seemed that no one would let him speak for in that moment Laxus re-entered the department, throwing a file onto the desk between Gray and Gajeel, "Look alive girls, we have a case."

...

Being snubbed didn't phase Natsu, Gray and Gajeel had at least taken the time to talk and walk him through their process, but Chief Laxus paid little to no attention to the new member. Sadly the case of the missing world renowned model Jenny Realight, seemed to be a dead end. There were no clues that seemed to lead them anywhere, or anywhere close to finding her body. she had been missing for six days now.

Natsu examined the debris scattered around the stretch of road on the deserted mountain. The abandoned car was empty, void of any possessions, anything that showed personality. It troubled Natsu that there was nothing in the car, from what he had read in the car ride over Ms. Realight seemed to be a very expressive person.

Gray walked up to Natsu, camera in hand, "Have you found anything?"

"No, that's the problem." Natsu shook his head and stood up, "Ms. Realight is an expressive person, she tends to throw things to the wind." He turned back towards the crime scene, "But there doesn't seem to be a trace of her in her own personal vehicle."

"Do you follow her in the tabloids or something?" Gray snorted.

Natsu held up his phone, "Just from the ride here on Instagram." He put the cell back in his pocket, "In all of her pictures that she has posted, her belongings are everywhere." Natsu suddenly had a thoughtful look, "Has anyone questioned her roommates yet?"

"No, they're about to send a car out there in a few minutes." Gray squatted down to take a few more pictures, "Why are you asking?" he looked away from the camera, and turned to face Natsu only to find that the other man was already gone. Gray could only scoff and returned to taking his pictures, "What a guy..."

...

Lucy gripped the roots of her hair in her fists, the word were just not flowing like they were supposed to. She had been working on this damned script all week and she had barely gotten past the first page. This was supposed to be a comedy, but she couldn't come up with anything funny. She groaned in desperation as she felt tears of frustration pricked her eyes. Why was this so difficult, with every other god damn thing she wrote came easily, but this was being stubborn!

So when her phone rang, she answered it without looking at the caller ID and with a snarled and curt, "Hello."

"I-is this Miss Lucy Dreyer?" The voice on the other end asked, off put by the tone of her voice.

"Who the hell wants to know? I'm busy at the moment, please bother some other goddamn-"

The person on the other end interrupted quickly, "This is Detective Dragneel from the Magnolia Police Department."

Lucy sat up straight in her chair, pushing away from her desk, "Oh, I'm so sorry Detective! I didn't-"

"Would you be able to come into the station today?" he continued on, not giving her a chance to explain herself.

"Of course, I can be there at two, but Detective-"

"Good, I shall see you then."

Lucy was about to retort when she heard the click of the Detective hanging up on the other end. She stared at the phone, a puzzled expression crossing her face, that however was quickly replaced by one of delight as her imagination struck her. She pulled herself back towards the desk, her short conversation gave her a brilliant idea. She glanced at the clock before her fingers began to type away, the story beginning to unfold itself onto the screen and she had just enough time to finish her idea, she thought with a small smirk.

By the time she had gotten the majority of her script idea written out when she had glanced at the time it was almost time for her to be at the station. "Oh my god, I'm going to be late!"

...

Lucy burst through the door of the police department, her hair flying out of her braid and her jacket slipping off her shoulder. She ran to the front desk, leaning over with her hands on her knees, "I'm looking for Detective Dragneel, I have an appointment." Lucy said between pants.

The receptionist nodded and lifted the phone to speak into it after pressing a few buttons. He placed the phone back into the cradle, reaching into the drawer to pull out a badge and clip. He gave Lucy a smile as he handed her a visitor's badge and telling her the directions to the department.

Lucy climbed the stairs, taking the two at a time, fixing the badge to the lapel of her coat, nearly sprinting to her destination. She wrenched the door open, shouting out as she entered, "I'm here, I'm not late!" As she came back to herself, she notice the three pairs of eyes staring at her. Lucy cleared her throat, straightening out her clothes, the feeling of being embarrassed incredibly overwhelming. "Hello, I'm looking for Detective Dragneel."

The pink haired man in the back stood up, he looked very familiar, but before she could think it over, he was already in front of her and shaking her hand. She stared up at his face and recognized him, "Oh, you're the guy-"

He cut her off quickly, "You're weird."

Lucy felt her eyebrow twitch, and her grip tightened on his hand, she already didn't like this guy...

 **A/n: Thank you for reading, and please have a wonderful day guys!**

 **xoxo**

 **Marina Rose**


	9. Chapter 9

Lucy squirmed uncomfortably in the very plush chair of the Homicide Department of the Police station, a cup of obviously old coffee warming her hands but she made no attempt to drink the sludge. She fidgeted as she waited for Detective Dragneel to come back with her paperwork. Her eyes roamed the busy office, other officer seemed to be pouring over pictures of a crime scene, her gaze moved to the desk near her, with scattered files and a open one laid out in the center, the pictures of what seemed to be a car crash laid out over the span of the cramped wooden surface.

Lucy turned her head around, checking to see if anyone was watching her before she scooted her chair over towards the desk and gingerly picking up the closest picture. As she was so engrossed in her musings, she did not hear Natsu come up behind her, so when he touched her shoulder she nearly jumped out of her skin. "You should say something when you sneak up on someone like that!" She sputtered with her hand over her thumping heart.

"And you shouldn't look at things you shouldn't either, but we all make mistakes." Natsu said off handedly. He sat down at the table, placing a few papers down in front of him with a small smirk on his face as the tips of Lucy's ears turned pink with embarrassment. She put the picture back where she had found it and turned around while clearing her throat, her hands fiddling with hem of her shirt.

"So, what else do we have to do?" She asked, not looking him in the eye.

Natsu stared at her a second, before picking up the papers in front of him, "You just have to sign the rest of these papers and the you're free to go." He slid the forms across the table towards her, "But I have just one question." He posed, keeping his hand atop of the papers.

Lucy at him skeptically, "What is it?" She asked wearily.

He pointed at her, "How did you find the suspect the last time we met?" His face all serious as he stared into her eyes.

Lucy stared back at him before smiling, "Is that all?" Lucy felt the humor of the situation bubble up and the inspiration hit her like a truck, "I'll show you if you help me." She tilted her head to the side, "Do we have a deal?" She held her hand out across the table.

Natsu contemplated it for a moment and then reached out and gripped her hand, "I think we have a deal." He released her hand and slid the papers her way, which she quickly signed and took her copies.

"I'll meet you at the coffee shop around the corner from here, you know the one with the great bagels?" Lucy asked as she stood up, collecting her bad under her arm.

Natsu also stood, "Yeah, I can meet you in an hour."

Lucy gave him a disarming smile, "That's the one. I'll see you soon!" She waved and left in a hurry, and as she left the two detectives that had been listening in on the whole conversation nudged each other, pointing out the faraway look in the new homicide detective's eyes.

...

The smile stayed on her face long after she had left the police station, she hadn't even realized that she was evening smiling until Cana said something as she dropped off the paperwork for the car accident.

"What's with that smile, Lucy?" Cana looked up from her phone and raised her eyebrow, giving Lucy her attention, "Something you wanna share?"

Lucy reached up to her face, realizing that her cheeks were starting to ache. Her cheeks flushed a little from the attention but she dismissed it, quickly grabbing Cana's hands, "I think I found my muse." Lucy said as her eyes shined, "I'm going to get him to act for me."

"Him, huh?" Cana latched onto this information quickly, "So your muse is a man? Is he hot?"

"I have to go meet him in twenty minutes," Lucy pulled away and headed to the door, "I'll tell you what happened later!"

"But you didn't tell me if he was hot or not!" Cana whined as Lucy left laughing, "She never tells me anything." She pouted and then took a swig from her bottle that was at hand.

Lucy hurried back to the cafe she was going to meet Detective Dragneel. She chose this cafe due to the fact her best friend worked there. It was a good quiet place that they could get this out of the way, and as she said before, it had great bagels. She entered the cafe at a brisk pace, looking around the cafe and her face went into a grin without any prompting as she saw the bright mop of pink hair.

Natsu saw her as soon as she walked through the door. His heart warmed as he watch her smile as her gaze landed on him, he stood up and waited for her to sit down before returning to his own seat. He slid the coffee he got for her in her direction, "I got this for you."

Lucy's eyes light up, "Oh, thank you!" She took a sip, surprised to find that was exactly how she liked it, "I like my coffee sweet, how did you know?"

Natsu grinned, "You have your ways, I have mine. Now, you were going to tell me how you caught that guy?" He leaned forward, his voice lowering. It sent a shiver down her spine, her face warming considerably...

A plate of fresh chocolate-chip muffins was set down in between the two of them by a small, fair hand. The two quickly looked up to the person who had brought the muffins. The woman was short, like her wild and wavy blue hair, her brown eyes were large and stood out against her pale skin. She had her hands on her hips and a smirk on her lips as she made eye contact with Lucy.

"So," The blue haired woman started, "You going to introduce me or not?"

Lucy looked back to Natsu, "Detective, this is my friend Levy McGarden."

...

 **A/N: So, this update is a little earlier then I had planned, I really wanted to update for my Guest reviewer, you made my day! Also I wanted to introduce Levy in this chapter, even if it was right at the end.**

 **Again, thank you guys so much fofr reading and sticking with me, things will start to pick from here, the next xhapter will be the last of the set up and then we get to our story!**

 **Have a wonderful day or night everyone!**

 **TTFN~ Ta ta for now~**

 **xoxo**

 **Marina Rose**


	10. Chapter 10

Levy peered over the glass sneezeguard that separated the kitchen from the lobby. Lucy had brought this handsome guy here with little warning to her. The nosy best friend in her, had her straining her ears to pick up any scrap of the conversation. She frowned as she couldn't hear anything, this prompted her to take quick action. She scooped up the plate of fresh chocolate chip muffins that Jet had just made. Ignoring the squawk of displeasure from the cook, she took the plate out to her friends table.

Once the introductions were out of the way, Levy walked away. Now that she had gotten a good look of this guy's face, she could relax some and wait till Lucy and her are alone to bug her about this guy! Levy snickered behind her hand, careful not to make too loud of a sound to catch their attention.

"I need you to act in my play." Lucy demanded, leaning forward in her seat.

The question caught him off guard, the surprise clear on his face. "Me? In your play?"

Lucy nodded vigorously, pieces of her hair falling from her bun to frame her face, "All you have to do is say some lines in a few shows. It'll be a piece of cake!" she assured him, hoping her smile would seal the deal.

However he merely blinked and didn't answer.

"If you do this for me, I'll tell you how I found that guy." She knew that this was the only way to reel him in.

"Hmm...I'll bite." Natsu nodded, "I'll help you."

"Promise?" Lucy held out her smallest finger, making the pink haired mom actually snort with laughter.

"For real?"

"For real." Lucy said with a serious face.

As odd as Natsu thought it was, he found himself reaching out and crossing his little finger with hers.

Lucy beamed, pulled away and sat up straight. "Alright. I'll tell you." Lucy leaned forward. Natsu also leaned in as well, "I can see smells."

"What?" Natsu leaned away, a confused look gracing his features, "You can do what?"

"I can see smells. What, do you not believe me?" Lucy set her chin and made eye contact.

Natsu shook his head immediately, "No, I don't believe you."

Lucy frowned, "Well, I can prove it to you then!" she shot back. She stared at his head for a second before glaring into his eyes. "You used coconut shampoo this morning!"

Natsu's eyes widened and he leaned forward, slapping his hand over her mouth, "You tell anyone that and I'll say that you're a dirty liar." He released his hand from her face. He relaxed, taking a muffin and sat back in the chair. "That was just a lucky guess. You'll have to do better than that." He shrugged nonchalantly.

Lucy pursed her lips, "Oh, I'll prove it to you." She grumbled looking around the cafe. Her eyes landed on the counter by the register. "I'll be right back." She said, standing up and walking away.

Levy gave Lucy a quizzical stare as the blonde reached over the counter to grab three small paper cups and a handful of mints from the ornate glass bowl next to the register. Lucy noticed the stare, and smiled back with a 'Don't Worry About It.' grin. She returned to the table with the mints and cups sliding them over to the pink haired man as she sat back in her seat.

"Here." She said, turning her chair around to face the other way.

Natsu looked at the items for a second before looking back up to Lucy, "What do you want me to do with these?" He picked up the cups, starting to separate them.

Lucy sighed, "I have to explain everything too? Alright." She turned back around, taking a mint and placing it in the middle of the table; then taking the cups from him, she put them in a row, covering the mint and hiding it from sight. She turned back around, "All three cups are the same, now you switch them all around, make sure you mix them up good too, and then I'll turn back around when you're done and I'll tell you where the mint is. Easy enough?"

He could almost hear the smirk in her voice. "Easy enough." He reached out and took the mint out from the cup and placing it in his coat pocket, while sliding another cup to hide the sound. He pushed all the cups around for a minute before telling her to turn back around. This would prove that she couldn't possibly-

"If you wanted to cheat, don't put it in your pocket." Lucy pointed to the left pocket where the mint was located.

Natsu felt his eyes narrow, "Do it again." He motioned for her to turn back around, which she did with a smile smile. He took the mint out of his pocket and placed it under the paper cup before moving them around.

After several rounds, a few she was even outside, she managed to guess right every single time, Natsu sighed.

"Okay," He said, "I'm almost convinced."

"Almost?" Lucy asked with a raised eyebrow. "What else can i do to prove it?"

Natsu popped a mint into his mouth, "You can see the scents of people right?" he asked, tilting his head to the side.

"I can." She said confidently.

"Okay, find me." Natsu stood up, "Give me a two minute head start and then come find me."

Lucy grinned, "Two minutes. Not a second more."

"Not a second more," Natsu found himself smiling back. "Ready? Go!" He hurried out of the coffee shop and down the street in a flash.

Lucy calmly watched the time on her phone, and once the two minutes were up, she slowly made her way outside, easily discerning Natsu's scent from the others that milled around in the air. The mixture of coconut and mint stood out with bright contrast as she followed his steps, circling around the fountain twice, starting to go into one building before ultimately going in the other direction. Lucy laughed at his obvious indecision of where to hide, when she spotted the mint and coconut smell wafting down from the nearby building's rooftop.

Natsu watched as she retraced his path down to a T, he was too focused on watching her copy his exact movements to realize that he was leaned out a bit too far when she stopped suddenly.

She faced the other direction before quickly whipping back and pointing up to the rooftop, she swore she saw the tell tale pink blur down below the edge, "Found you!" she shouted up to him.

Natsu sighed, "I'll be damned..." he said under his breath before getting up and waving down to the blonde. "You got me. I'll come down." he called down to her.

This was only the beginning...

...

 **A/N: Hello, did ya miss me? ;D**

 **Thanks again for all of you who favorited and followed! Hopefully I'll be able to get you all another update soon, life has been really busy.**

 **Thanks to any reviews that do come in, I read all of them and am grateful for them. Thank you!**

 **TTFN~ Ta ta for now~**

 **Xoxo**

 **Marina Rose**


	11. Chapter 11

Lucy spent the past few days locked in her room revising and finishing the final parts of her script. As she typed the final line the self satisfied grin covered her face, this had to be her finest script if she did say so herself. Humming with pleasure, she shut her laptop and paid attention to the TV that was on for background noise.

"After a week of searching, Magnolia Police Department has found the car of missing top model, Jenny Realight, this morning the South Gate River. Within the car nothing was found, we are waiting to hear if there are any clues pertaining to the model's disappearance..." The Anchor droned on in a monotone. Footage from where the car was being pulled from the river was being played in the corner.

Lucy frowned, she remember how the missing model had made the headlines all week, her father had freaked and made sure she came home before dark and always call as she was leaving work and as she got home. Not to say that she really minded, she knew it was because he cared.

She lifted the remote to change the channel, maybe watch the variety show she loved before she started on dinner. She snuggled in deeper, burrowing under all the blankets and pillows she stacked on the bed. The winter season always left her freezing. She felt content in that moment, laughing as the contestants fell into a mud pit. Time passed quickly, Lucy was so absorbed into the show that when her phone rang it startled her so bad that she fell off the bed.

She scrambled to answer before her phone stopped ringing, gripping it through the mass of fabric. She swiped the green icon and held the phone to her ear,"Hello?"

"This is Detective Dragneel, I need your help."

...

Natsu stood impatiently outside the coffee shop that he had met Lucy at the last time that they had met. He scanned up and down the street, keeping an eye out for the blonde. They had a agreed to meet last night. He checked his watched again, it was almost time for her to be there and still no sign of her. He huffed out a breath, sticking his nose back into his scarf, the bell chiming behind him as someone exited the shop.

He nearly jolted when someone whispered into his ear, "For a Detective, you're not very observant."

He spun around to meet a laughing Lucy, "When did you get here?" He mustered through the words, tucking his chin lower into his scarf so that the warmth on his cheeks didn't show. He glared at her as she held the two cups of coffee up as she caught her breath back, he could see the tears in the corners of her eyes.

"I've been in the coffee shop for ages, you didn't even notice i was in there!" She snickered at the end of her sentence. She stood back up straight before handing him one of the cups, "I asked Levy what you had gotten last time, I hope that's okay." She grinned even wider if that was possible as he grunted as he took the cup. "So, what do you need my help for? You didn't really say last night over the phone..."

He cleared his throat before speaking, "I need you to help me find Jenny Realight."

Lucy's jaw dropped, "The Jenny Realight that's been missing for a week? That Jenny Realight?"

Natsu nodded, "Yes, that Jenny Realight. I guess you know that we found her car yesterday in the South Gate River." he waited for her to answer with a yes before continuing on. "I need you to check around the area, tell me what you see."

Lucy was floored, "Uh, sure." She wasn't quite sure what to expect and she voiced these thoughts to Natsu, who in turn assured her everything would be fine.

They spent most of the car ride in silence, Lucy finished her coffee about half way through leaving her nothing to do with her hands. She glanced over at the man beside her, his profile was very striking it would look great on stage, or in low lighting...

"A picture would last longer." Natsu said with a smirk, as Lucy blushed and looked away.

Lucy turned her face to the window, "I'm going to need to take some headshots for the play soon. The script just has to be approved and then you can start rehearsing..." Lucy looked back at him, her cheeks not quite as rosy. "We only have a few months to get everything set."

"We have plenty of time for that, what we need to do is find Jenny Realight." Natsu reminded her.

"I wasn't saying that this wasn't also important." Lucy grumbled, he made it seem like she was more worried about her play than someone's safety. "I just don't want you to back out of our deal."

"I always keep my promises, Luce." Natsu said, throwing her a charming smile.

"Luce?" She questioned, her eyebrow raised and her eyes on his face, not that she enjoyed looking at it...much. She also couldn't help but notice he had used the same coconut shampoo...

"It's my nickname for you. You don't like it?" he asked looking over at her for a second.

"Whatever floats your boat." She shrugged with what seemed like indifference, but she truly didn't mind the name at all.

...

Lucy paced up and down the part of the road that was blocked off by police tape. Her eyes easily tracked the rubber and oil smells from the car, as well as the natural smells that harbored around the area. "What is it exactly that I'm looking for?" she asked as she continued her sweep of the steep bank.

"Anything that looks out of the ordinary." Natsu supplied from his spot by the car.

"That was so helpful." She muttered under her breath. All there seemed to be the smells as one would find in nature apart from the car that had crashed its way down the water. Rubber from the tires, oil from the engine, and the rose petals...

"Wait!" Lucy called out, "I think I see something!" Her body moved quickly following the faint trail of rose and vanilla in the opposite direction. She went up the hill that overshadowed the river, she didn't listen to Natsu's calls for her to wait for him and instead plowed on. The smell was so much stronger as she reached the top of the hill, she was almost there-

Natsu grabbed her arm, "You need to listen!" He pulled her behind him, "You have no idea what could be up here, so wait down here until I say so." He said seriously, pulling the gun he had hidden at his side. Lucy started to protest but his sharp look stopped her.

She waited for him to reached the top of the hill, gave him a full minute before she started to head up there as well when he came back down, the dark look on his face didn't give her comfort. "What did you find?" she asked hesitantly.

He took a moment to answer, "She's there. We need to call this in." He rubbed his face with both hands before pulling out his phone.

Lucy may be a blonde, but she wasn't stupid. Jenny Realight was dead. Lucy was proud of herself for not losing her lunch right there and then. She waited for Natsu to get off the phone before posing her question, "What do we do now?"

"Now we wait and give our statements and then we go question her roommates." Natsu said, his jaw tight.

"Okay, give statements and then question..." She trailed off as she realized, "We? Why am I going with you to question her roommates?"

...

 **A/N: Happy Holidays everyone! An update? Shocking, I know! I wanted to get this out you all of you who have followed and wow am I blown away by how many of you guys followed and favorited!**

 **As a gift for you guys, i'll take requests for a small hoilday themed chapter!**

 **I really am thankful for all you guys, you are awesome! Keep an eye out for another chapter soon!**

 **TTFN~ Ta ta for now~**

 **xoxo**

 **Marina Rose**


	12. Chapter 12

Lucy scanned the lavish apartment of the model's that Jenny Realight shared with her two roommates. She couldn't help but appreciate the finer adornments that littered the shelves as they were led into the main living space by one of the roommates. A particular row of dainty glass bottles caught her eye.

Natsu was a few steps ahead of her, walking next to the pink haired model. He also looked around the apartment, "Thank you for your time, Miss..." he trailed off, allowing her to supply her name.

"Blendy. Sherry Blendy." She said, motioning for the two to sit on the couch. "I don't know what else I can tell you that I haven't told the other detectives..." Sherry said, clasping her hands in front of her.

"Maybe they'll think of questions that the other detectives hadn't asked yet." A silver haired woman said as she came from the kitchen, carrying a tray full of snacks and tea. "I am Mirajane Strauss, I knew Jenny since we were just starting out as models."

She placed the tray onto the coffee table, moving a teacup in front of each person, "It's so weird to think that she's gone." Mirajane said sadly as she sat down.

"It wasn't like she was here much anyway..." Sherry said as she took a sip of her tea.

"Sherry!" Mirajane frowned, sending the pink haired woman a glare.

"What? She was always out with her boyfriend, she was never here for long anyway." Sherry shot back, "Here for a day dropping off her journals or whatever she had bought that week." The woman shrugged, "We weren't as close as you two were." she said bluntly.

Before Mirajane could counter back, Natsu spoke up. "You said that Jenny wrote journals?"

Mirajane looked like she wanted to say something to Sherry but ignored her to answer the pink haired detective's question, "Jenny wrote everything down in her journals, said you'd never know when you might want to remember something or if she ever wanted to write an autobiography, she would already have it written down." Mirajane let out a soft chuckle. "Jenny always tried to think a step ahead."

"May we see the journals?" Natsu asked, he felt his heart race. This could be the lead that they were looking for.

"Sure, I'll show you to her room." Mirajane stood with Natsu and lead him to the room down the hall.

Lucy peeked over at Sherry over the rim of her cup, "So, you didn't like Jenny?"

Sherry frowned slightly, "It wasn't that I didn't like her, we just weren't very close..."

"Did you know who her boyfriend was?" Lucy inquired.

"I know he is some famous chef. Dark and mysterious as she would say." The model looked over to the bottles that Lucy had been studying earlier. "She did love making her own fragrance. She said that no one else would smell like her." The corner of her lips quirked upwards involuntarily.

Lucy noticed, and noted that Sherry did miss Jenny even if she didn't say it out loud. "Is it alright if I look at the bottles?"

"Not like Jenny would mind now." Sherry answered nonchalantly.

"Thanks," Lucy smiled, getting up and going to the shelf. Her eyes followed the smells that wafted up from the colorful glass bottles. She was still studying them when Natsu and Mirajane came back into the room.

"Thank you both again for your help." Natsu bowed to the the two other women in the room, "My partner and I will go over the information and chase down some new leads." Lucy followed suit and bowed as well, she moved with Natsu to the door.

"Good luck!" Sherry shouted out from the main room.

"I hope you catch the monster that did this." Mirajane said solemnly before shutting the door.

...

Lucy sat in the cafe, sipping away at her lukewarm coffee as she researched Jenny's dark and mysterious boyfriend. Some of the tabloids just had blurry pictures that really did nothing but spark more conspiracy theories, and just as she reached the third hour and was about to give up she stumbled upon a lesser known website called Dispatch.

"I got him!" Lucy shouted, startling everyone nearby. Lucy blushed and muttered her apologies to the other customers. She studied the man's face, he was familiar, but from where she couldn't put her finger on it. She stretched her back out, wincing at the pops and cracks it made.

She quickly saved the picture to the thumb drive she had brought with her. The blonde glanced at her watch, cursing under her breath, "I'm going to be late!" She stuff her laptop in her bag and took a big gulp of her coffee before throwing it in the trash. "Bye, Levy!" she called out as she raced out of the store.

She caught a cab and told the driver the address to Fairy Tail. Her script had been approved and today was the first day of set design and the beginning of casting. The car ride was over before she realized, she was too wrapped up in her own thoughts. She paid the driver and hopped out of the cab, her smile brightening as she spotted Cana outside waiting for her.

"I would have thought you'd be here earlier, it is your play after all." The brunette teased, falling in step with the blonde.

"I got distracted." Lucy replied, greeting the various crew members as they headed to the stage.

"Would that distraction be a very hot, pink haired homicide detective?" Cana asked with a smirk on her face.

"What hot, pink haired homicide detective?" Lucy countered, not letting her surprise show on her face. Although she should have expected this. Cana always had a way of knowing, Lucy just hadn't figured out just how the other woman come across her information.

"You know exactly what hot, pink haired homicide detective I'm talking about, but when you're ready to share all the juicy details, I'll be here." Cana said, winking before she laughed and walked away.

"See you later!" Lucy shook her head, Cana would wear her down eventually, she knew that. Trying to keep a secret from her was just impossible.

And before Lucy had even realized it, the day had ended, they had made considerable progress on the sets and had made a date for auditions. When she returned home, back ached from all the work she had put in, she quickly showered and got ready for the night. Turning on the TV, flipping through the channels until she found the cooking channel and left it there as she began to make herself some dinner.

She paid the TV no mind as she finished boiling the water for her ramen, and hummed a old show tune as she set the pot down in front of the TV. She lifted the first bite of noodles to her lips and glanced up at the screen and froze.

There was the man in the picture with Jenny Realight.

...

 **A/N: Wow, two updates in two days? I surprise even myself! I guess I really wanted to get this out to all of you guys, seriously you all make my day.**

 **And this story has 50 followers! I'm blown away! You guys are amazing!**

 **I am working on the special holiday chapter, and I would love to know what you all would like to see! Drop a review or PM to let me know what you're thinking!**

 **As always,**

 **TTFN~ Ta ta for now~**

 **Xoxo**

 **Marina Rose**


	13. Holiday Chapter

Gajeel stepped through the glass door; out of the biting wind and into the warm interior of the coffee shop. The dark haired man reached up with gloved hands to lower the dark colored scarf from his face. He rubbed his hands together for warmth as he stepped closer to the counter, looking up at the large menu posted up above the counter. He frowned, almost everything seemed too sweet, it made his teeth hurt just thinking about it. As his eyes roamed the board, scanning the items in thought, a voice interrupted his thinking. He brought his gaze down to meet the small woman's gaze.

"Are you ready to order?" The blue haired woman looked up at him with large brown eyes. The large visor bearing the emblem of the coffee shop made her face look even smaller than it already was. Her hair was only contained by the bright orange elastic that stood out in bright contrast to the royal blue of her hair. Gajeel looked at her, he cleared his throat and quickly mumbled out his order.

Levy took in his appearance, he was nearly over a foot taller than her, and his face held many piercings that made him seem almost scary. His red eyes were intense and it sent chills down her spine. Did they run in his family? Or maybe it was just a genetic mutation? She didn't linger on these thoughts and punched in his order, "Anything else for you today, sir?"

"No, that's it." His voice matched his looks, the rough tenor gave Levy more chills. She babbled out his total, rubbing her forearms to alleviate the goosebumps. She watched as he unzipped his jacket to reach for his wallet, and she noticed the ID badge that hung from his neck.

"Detective Redfox..." She read aloud, unconsciously leaning forward to read the identification card. "Magnolia Police Department, homicide unit..."

Gajeel cleared his throat as the small woman leaned a bit too close to him, he slid the ID back in his jacket with one hand and handed her the money with the other. "Here." He said gruffly, smirking as she squeaked and put the money in the drawer. He took the chance to observe her. Her hair was really shiny and her face was quite cute as well...

"Your order will be ready in just a moment!" she told him cheerfully. She moved over to the coffee machines and prepared his drink. She snuck looks at him, while he did something on his phone. He was really quite attractive...

Levy took his bagel from Jet and headed out to the lobby, a silly smile on her face. "...Detective Redfox?" She called out to him softly. Her smile grew brighter, "Your order is ready."

Gajeel blinked as she came up to him with his food and drink. Her smile also caught him off guard. "Thank you." he muttered. He nodded to her and turned to leave but he felt her tug on his sleeve. He raised his eyebrows in question, a confused look crossing his features.

"I was wondering, do you work with Detective Dragneel?" Levy asked, removing her hand from his jacket.

"I do." Gajeel turned back to face the small woman. "Why?"

"He is helping my friend with something and I was wondering what kind of person he is..." She explained, her loyalty for her friend shining through her words.

"Look..." Gajeel started to say, but the look in her eyes stopped him. He nearly groaned out loud, this was so not like him. Maybe he was getting sick or something... "I don't know Dragneel too well but I can tell you what I do know. Can you meet me tonight? I have a shorter shift tonight, miss..." He offered, feeling incredibly awkward he looked at his watch.

"That works for me! Please call me Levy! I won't get off here till tonight anyway. Where should I meet you? I don't want to keep you." Levy grinned at the man, completely unaware of how pink his cheeks had gotten.

"Uh, I can meet you here. See you." He exited the coffee shop quickly, not wanting to linger with his flaming face.

...

Without even realizing it, the coffee shop became a habit for him. He failed to notice how he would look for her everyday. She would always have his order hot and ready for him as he walked through the door. Some nights he would wait for her to get off from her shift to escort her home in the dark, cold winter nights that were too dangerous for her to walk home by herself in his opinion.

Soon the days and weeks passed and it was Christmas Eve; by some Christmas miracle they both had gotten off for the night. He suggested they go grab a bite together, in the spirit of friendship, he told himself.

He notice how Levy wasn't acting like her usual self. The questions and facts came few and in between and it made him worry slightly. She was so little and they had walked a long way in the cold...

As they reached her house Levy's behavior became increasingly weird. Gajeel had enough and asked her bluntly, "Are you sick, Shrimp?"

"Stop calling me Shrimp!" She snapped, her face flushing.

"Well then why are you acting all weird?" Gajeel grumbled, she didn't have to yell, sheesh.

Levy's lips thinned into a line and she reached into her bag and pulled out a brightly wrapped present. "Merry Christmas, Detective Redfox..." Her face was entirely pink now, and she couldn't look him in the eye. As soon as he took the present she pounced on her door, swiftly unlocking it.

He grabbed her arm before she could run away. "I didn't get you anything..." he said, feeling guilty.

"You don't have to! I made it for you because I wanted to!" She said, trying to give him a reassuring smile.

"You made it for me?" Gajeel asked, his heart speeding up.

"Yes..." Levy pulled her arm out from his grip, "I think I'll head in now." She turned to head inside, but before she went completely in she turned and jumped into his arms, placing a sweet kiss against his lips.

He caught her as she flew at him, but he froze as he felt her lips against his. While he was still in shock, she pulled away and went inside before he could even say a word.

...

It had been a few days since Gajeel had seen Levy, and it was starting to get on his nerves. He knew she was avoiding him, she wouldn't answer his call or the door when he went to her house.

He asked around at the coffee house and found out she worked the late shift on New Year's. He waited for her to get off, making sure he caught her before she could run off again.

Levy didn't expect to see Gajeel as she walked out the door of the coffee house. She tried to go back inside but he held the door shut. Her heart was beating fast and hard, her face was sure red as well.

"Why have you been avoiding me?" Gajeel asked, his face was close to hers, his body completely overshadowing hers. "Is it cause you kissed me?"

Levy felt like her heart was about to burst, "You didn't kiss me back!"

In the background they could hear the people in the coffee shop start counting down to the new year.

"If you had waited for a minute or answered my calls..." Gajeel said and drew closer.

"5!"

"You would know..."

"4!"

"That I..."

"3!"

"Feel the same."

"2!"

"Gajeel?"

"1!"

"Yes?

"Happy new years!"

"Kiss me."

"Planned on it."

...

 **A/N: Happy new years everyone! Sorry this was a little late but I hope you enjoyed!**

 **AND WOW WE MADE IT TO 60 FOLLOWERS?! THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH!**

**Here's to all you guys! Let's have a great year together!**

 **TTFN~ Ta ta for now~**

 **Xoxo**

 **Marina Rose**


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